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This presentation will explore the strengths, limitations, and possible synergies of open pedagogy and Quality Matters for online and hybrid courses. Although some might view open pedagogy and Quality Matters as quite different perspectives, we will argue that together they offer complementary ideas that are needed to foster courses that are accessible and engaging to all learners and which promote both student agency and institutional processes supporting course quality.

Open pedagogy has various forms; from the classic view of open pedagogy as course activities which the 5Rs of Open enable (Wiley, 2013) to more recent definitions advocating that open pedagogy is centered in student agency and ownership of the learning experience (DMLResearchHub, 2016). From a course design perspective, open pedagogy is rooted in shaping course policies, content, and assessment in collaboration with a particular cohort. Open pedagogy strongly echoes features of many of AACU’s High Impact Practices that have a common thread of student engagement, agency, and activity. However, the shining examples of open pedagogy thus far are rooted in face-to-face classrooms with extensive synchronous interaction. Advocates for open pedagogy may raise concerns about prepared off the shelf courses that students sit through rather than engage with and contribute to, and the idea of a course designed entirely in advance would appear to work against the course dynamically evolving in response to student interests.

Quality Matters (2016) is a research–based peer review process, that is highly influential in instructional design and quality assurance of course design for online and hybrid courses, particularly asynchronous courses. It offers a rigorous review of the course design and is regarded as an effective institutional process to improve the quality of courses and student learning. Quality Matters focuses solely on the design of a course rather than how a course is facilitated. It is rooted in developing clear learning outcomes to help understand the purpose of the course and in ensuring that activities, lectures, readings, discussions, and projects align to help learners meet those outcomes. It also promotes accessibility, interactivity, and that students have clear instructions and ways to seek help. It offers instructors feedback and perspective on their courses, and it offers institutions external validation. However, the process is independent of a particular cohort of students. Advocates for Quality Matters might raise concerns that students in a course that is changing as it goes may experience unnecessary frustration because instructions and expectations are unclear or incomplete, courses seem incoherent, or courses fail to cover what they set out to accomplish.

Participants will consider how the strengths of both approaches can work together and will explore strategies to increase student agency through the design of dynamic online courses.

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